Dairy-free, Egg-free Pancakes

I’ve eaten a lot of vegan pancakes over the last two years. My son loved every pancake I ever made him, especially if it had chocolate chips in it. But I knew there had to be something better than the dense, chewy, and dare I say gummy patties that were coming off my griddle. And let me just say that cutting pancakes with a knife is a sin. Please tell me you don’t know what I’m talking about. After all, I was spoiled by making these for the previous five years. So I tried a bunch of different recipes, in search of anything that even hinted at light and fluffy, but not prone to syrup sogginess. I found no leads. The closest I got were these ones from Chocolate Covered Katie. You guys, these are good pancakes. Good texture, good flavor, add some shredded coconut to the batter too, if that’s your thing. Or don’t. Try them, you’ll like them. But you know, at the end of the day, I just wanted to find a plain-jane recipe that didn’t have a bunch of extra stuff in it. Sometimes you just want the syrup to be the star, you know? So one day, I was having some family over for dinner and my cupboards were bare so I decided pancakes for dinner were in order. (Brinner, anyone?) I wasn’t about to subject everyone to pancakes of the allergy-free variety so I made my long-lost-love recipe for pancakes, and then I made a small batch of allergy-free ones for Cohen. I ended up with a plate of those heavenly egg-and-milk-laden pancakes and my tastebuds salivated wept at the joyous reunion, longing for days gone by when I could make those pancakes all.the.time. And then I thought to myself, how have I never tried to make these pancakes allergy free? So that weekend, I tried it, and it worked! Light, fluffy, keeps a good texture under a puddle of Mrs. Butterworth’s. I’m telling you, this is THE ONE. I’ve made them at least ten times since that first time and I’m not looking back, guys. I’ve even had people over and fed them these pancakes. Really, they’re GOOD. I’m a fan of add-ins for pancakes and this recipe lends itself to everything I’ve tried so far – blueberries, chocolate chips, pineapple, apples, coconut, bananas, or just plain. My favorite combo right now is blueberry with toasted coconut. Watch the video to see how, if you’re interested. And the recipe is below. Don’t forget the dairy-free chocolate chips if you want it Cohen-style.

Pancakes

3/4 cup rice milk (plus extra, if needed)

2 Tablespoons distilled white vinegar

1 cup flour

2 Tablespoons sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 Tablespoons vegetable oil

1 teaspoon vanilla

Preheat griddle or frying pan to medium heat, or 350°.

Combine rice milk and vinegar in a medium sized bowl and let sit for 5 minutes. Meanwhile, combine all dry ingredients in a small bowl. After 5 minutes have passed, add the oil and vanilla to the milk and vinegar. Combine the wet with the dry ingredients and mix well. Add more milk if needed, until desired consistency is reached. Pour batter onto hot, greased griddle, 1/3 cup at a time. Watch for bubbles on the surface and for the edges to start to dry slightly. Flip pancakes and cook on the other side until browned. Serve hot with desired toppings.